The Summer Haze Comes Early in Dead Gowns Debut Album: ‘It’s Summer, I Love You, and I’m Surrounded by Snow’

It’s Summer, I Love You, and I’m Surrounded by Snow album cover

Full of longing and desire ‘It’s Summer, I Love You, and I’m Surrounded by Snow’ is Dead Gowns introduction to the world. Better known as Genevieve Beaudoin in her debut project as Dead Gowns, she explores the haze of summer in all its capacities. This album takes the listener on a journey of a hot Maine summer full of love, regret, and nostalgia.

Recording for ‘Its Summer…’ started in the early years of the pandemic. Across a patchwork of sessions, the songs evolved. As they were recorded, released, and toured in the 2022 EP, 'How’ and the 2023 extended release. The album took full form across Maine, Beaudoin’s home. ‘Its Summer…’ takes the shape of a desacralized church, an old gymnasium on Peaks Island, and various home studios. All these locations are present in the melodies and lyrics.

With her longtime collaborator/co-producer Luke Kalloch and a ring of East Coast instrumentalists, ‘It’s Summer, I Love You, and I’m Surrounded by Snow’ developed into its being.  An album on the surface, but once you delve in, it becomes a fully-fledged world. As if you are experiencing a past summer play out. Yet you can’t do anything to change the people, experiences, or opinions.

Dead Gowns is an incredible lyricist; each song reads like poetry, and each word adds depth and emotion to the album. Every song is deeply personal and more like an audio diary than an album. Two lyrics stand out in ‘Its Summer…’ that perfectly sum up the themes of the album.

Dead Gowns by POND Creative

In “Wet Dog“, Beaudoin sings, “A horse cut from the carousel”; this song is full of longing. Longing for a love that left, for contentment and a fleeting summer. “Wet Dog” encapsulates the haze of a perfect summer and how nothing will ever be what it once was. The chase for a certain person and how every memory haunts the town. This one lyric “A horse cut from the carousel” is a standout of the whole album and summarizes the album and its message.

Deeper into the album is a song that develops in an old folk tale song. “Burnout” would be played around the fire at summer camp. “A ring is no ring unless you tie it to multiple lives” represents how each action by our families directly affects us but also creates us as people. The burden of family life weighs on every decision that is made. No matter if it’s positive or negative, every action we make is impacted by previous generations.

As the album progresses, so do the seasons. Starting with spring in “How Can I”, the album progresses into Autumn with “Brother“ and “Burnout” and finally enters the dead of winter with the final track “Sand Plumb”. In each season, Beaudoin’s focus shifts from personal and romantic desire to a nuanced perspective on family and community.

As we reach the final track, “Sand Plumb”, Beaudoin is debating how one can flow freely through time. “How do I become the water?” begs the question of how one becomes life rather than letting life happen to them. With the hum of an electric guitar, Beaudoin is at peace with the overwhelming urge of nostalgia and longing. Throughout the album and seasons, she has learnt how to navigate nostalgia, love and loss.

‘It's Summer, I love You, and I’m Surrounded by Snow’ is a love letter to Beaudoin’s hometown and, ultimately her life. Throughout the album, Beaudoin blends her real experiences with fiction to explore how life could have been different but ultimately not changed. With each season, a new character or version of Beaudoin is introduced, but the backdrop of Maine and its ragged coastline remain the same. The idea of change and personal development is argued throughout the album. How much can someone change if they are in the same place, and how much of their personality is theirs? Are we just fragments of family members, past lovers, and experiences?

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